Nvidia is bringing the super phone experience to the mainstream smartphone market with the new Tegra 4i chip.
ZoomToday Nvidia introduced the Tegra 4i, an ARM-based quad-core SoC designed for the mainstream smartphone
sector. Previously codenamed as "Grey", it's packed with an integrated
4G LTE modem processor and is "significantly faster" than its nearest
competitor at only half the physical size.
Unlike the Tegra 4 chip which is focused on tablets and high-end
smartphones, this SoC will focus on bringing the super phone experience
to a more affordable mainstream phone market. It consists of four R4 Cortex-A9 CPU cores clocked at 2.3 GHz, Nvidia's fifth battery-saver "ninja" core, and 60 custom Nvidia GPU cores. The Tegra 4i's core size is 1.15 mm2 which is incredibly small compared to the Tegra 4's 2.7 mm2 core size.
ZoomIncluded in the new chip is an optimized version of the "futureproof" Nvidia
i500 LTE software-defined radio modem which delivers 100 Megabits per
second out of the box, plus software-upgradeability to 150 Mbps LTE,
carrier aggregation, and TD LTE. There's also an image signal processor,
a video engine, and an optimized memory interface. The company said it even made changes to the Cortex-A9
architecture itself to squeeze out even more performance from the chip,
and submitted them to ARM, thus the resulting Revision 4, or R4,
designation.
"ARM and Nvidia worked closely to further optimize the Cortex-A9
processor to drive performance and efficiency in areas such as streaming
and responsiveness," said Tom Cronk, executive vice president and
general manager, processor division, ARM. "This is an example of the
collaboration and innovation that enables ARM technology-based solutions
to be market drivers through multiple generations of SoC solutions."
In addition to the Tegra 4i chip, Nvidia formally introduced the
Tegra 4 family's Chimera Computational Photography Architecture. Chimera
offers features not seen on mobile devices before now including
always-on high-dynamic range (HDR) photos and videos, HDR panoramic and
persistent tap-to-track capabilities.
By offering an always-on HDR setting, users can instantly capture
high-quality HDR images similar to how the human eye sees the world, the
company said. The panoramic aspect allows the user to take wide-angle
"fish-eye" shots that typically require an expensive digital single-lens
reflex camera. The persistent tap-to-track tech directly focuses on a
person or object within a scene with a simple touch, thus the camera
will remain locked on that person/object if there's movement while also
keeping an optimum exposure level.
"Nvidia’s Chimera architecture takes mobile imaging far beyond what
consumers have come to expect from the phones and tablets," said Brian
Cabral, Vice President of Computation Imaging at Nvidia. "Capabilities
that until now have been reserved for professional photographers – like
instant HDR and HDR panoramic shots and flawless image tracking – are
now within easy reach for the rest of us."
Nvidia said this new architecture for image processing can conduct
nearly 100 billion mathematical operations per second using the same
techniques found in X-ray scanners, deep space telescopes and spy
satellites. Chimera is available in both the Tegra 4 and Tegra 4i SoCs.
Also shown on Friday was the company's "Phoenix" reference design for the Tegra 4i SoC so that smartphone
makers can use to quickly design and build future Tegra 4i-based
phones. This platform features a 5-inch 1080p display, an 8-mm thin
design, 4G LTE connectivity, PRISM 2, DirectTouch and the Chimera architecture.
"Nvidia’s Tegra 4i appears to outperform the leading integrated LTE
chip significantly, and also benefits from an integrated 'soft-modem'
that can be re-programmed over-the-air to support new frequencies and
air interfaces – something other modem vendors can only dream of," said Stuart Robinson, director, Handset Component Technologies Program at Strategy Analytics.
Both the chip and the reference design will be showcased next week
during Mobile World Congress 2013 in Barcelona, Spain (Feb. 25 – 28).
Below is a comparison between the two Tegra 4 SoCs:
Tegra 4
Quad-Core CPU: Cortex-A15, plus battery saver core
Max Clock Speed: 1.9 GHz
Tegra 4 GPU Cores: 72
LTE: Optional via Nvidia i500
Chimera: Yes
Memory Type: DDR3L & LPDDR3
Memory Size: 4 GB
LCD: 3200 x 2000
HDMA: Ultra HD (4K)
Process: 28-nm
Package Size / Type: 23x23 BGA / 14x14 FCCSP
Quad-Core CPU: Cortex-A15, plus battery saver core
Max Clock Speed: 1.9 GHz
Tegra 4 GPU Cores: 72
LTE: Optional via Nvidia i500
Chimera: Yes
Memory Type: DDR3L & LPDDR3
Memory Size: 4 GB
LCD: 3200 x 2000
HDMA: Ultra HD (4K)
Process: 28-nm
Package Size / Type: 23x23 BGA / 14x14 FCCSP
Tegra 4i
Quad-Core CPU: R4 Cortex-A9, plus battery saver core
Max Clock Speed: 2.3 GHz
Tegra 4 GPU Cores: 60
LTE: Integrated Nvidia i500 core
Chimera: Yes
Memory Type: LPDDR3
Memory Size: 2 GB
LCD: 1920 x 1200
HDMI: 1080p
Process: 28-nm
Package Size / Type: 12x12 POP / 12x12 FCCSP
Zoom
Quad-Core CPU: R4 Cortex-A9, plus battery saver core
Max Clock Speed: 2.3 GHz
Tegra 4 GPU Cores: 60
LTE: Integrated Nvidia i500 core
Chimera: Yes
Memory Type: LPDDR3
Memory Size: 2 GB
LCD: 1920 x 1200
HDMI: 1080p
Process: 28-nm
Package Size / Type: 12x12 POP / 12x12 FCCSP
Zoom
Stay tuned for more in-depth with the Tegra 4i.
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